Contents

Description

A large proportion of the park is
wetland, including the Little River, though there is also a wooded upland and meadow area. The reservation serves as a
habitat for numerous indigenous and
migratorybirds. Common species include
osprey,
great blue heron and the
woodcock, whose unusual mating ritual may sometimes be observed by visitors. Additionally, the park's ponds (Little Pond, Perch Pond, and Blair Pond) provide spring spawning grounds for
anadromousherring, which migrate from the
Atlantic Ocean via the
Mystic River and Alewife Brook, a tributary which, in turn, drains the Little River.[3]

The southern end and single largest part of the reservation is adjacent to the
Alewife Station at the northern end of the
MBTA Red Line in Cambridge. The
Minuteman Bikeway terminates at the reservation and the
Fitchburg Cutoff Path and Alewife Greenway run through it. The reservation includes Alewife Brook as it flows north through Cambridge, Arlington, and Somerville toward the Mystic River. Much of this corridor is fairly narrow, and contains only the brook, the
Alewife Brook Parkway and modest buffer strips of land on either side and in between the brook and the parkway. North of Broadway the area between the brook and the parkway opens, and has been developed to include playgrounds, playing fields, and Dilboy Stadium. South of the
Fitchburg Line is the small Blair Pond,[5] which has public access from Mooney Street and Normandy Ave. There are multiuse paths or sidewalks on at least one side of the brook for the entire length of Alewife Brook, which are being improved as part of the Alewife Greenway project. Little Pond is surrounded by fencing and private property, so there is no public access to the shoreline.

History

The
Fitchburg Railroad main line in 1843 was the first rail link constructed through the swampy area in western Cambridge. It still serves as the MBTA Commuter Rail
Fitchburg Line. The
Lexington and West Cambridge Railroad was branched off in 1846, with the curving connection still visible today, passing under Alewife Brook Parkway, along the west side of the Alewife Station parking garage, and proceeding northwest along the right-of-way of the present-day
Minuteman Bikeway. The
Watertown Branch Railroad was opened in 1851, branching from the Fitchburg and curving south behind what is now the Fresh Pond Shopping Center on the east side of Alewife Brook Parkway (then merely swampland). By 1852, several spurs were serving local freight customers, including ice houses on the south side of
Spy Pond.[6]

In 1870, the
Boston and Lowell Railroad bought the former Lexington and West Cambridge Railroad, by then renamed the Lexington and Arlington Railroad, and constructed a connection from the Alewife area through what is now Davis Square to
Somerville Junction. Most of this connection is now the
Somerville Community Path and
Alewife Linear Park, but at its western end it passed through what is now Alewife Center and met up with the Lexington, after curving past the stub ends of Fairmont and Lafayette Streets. This new connection also had a southerly fork known as the Fitchburg Cutoff, passing just north of the present-day Alewife Station, crossing the now-removed Fitchburg-Lexington connection, and joining the Fitchburg mainline. A map from 1903[7][8] shows these railroads criss-crossing the reservation, as well as Alewife Brook proceeding farther south to drain
Fresh Pond. The swampy area is largely undeveloped, compared to the surrounding neighborhoods.

The heavily channelized Alewife Brook as seen from the northeast side of the
Massachusetts Avenue bridge

Storm water management wetland

Beginning in 2011, the City of Cambridge constructed a 3.4-acre storm water management wetland in the reservation, just west of Alewife Station. The project opened in October 2013.[9] The wetland stores and gradually releases collected storm water runoff from nearby parts of Cambridge, including the Huron and Concord Avenue areas. A basin and native plantings will slow the flow of runoff and remove pollutants and nutrients before they enter the Little River. The area includes an amphitheater, interpretive signage, overlooks and boardwalks, and links the bike paths on either side. Habitats, ranging from deep marsh to riparian forest, were created.[10]

In April 2014, state officials announced that the Somerville Community Path will be extended alongside the
Green Line Extension, creating a continuous route from the Alewife Brook Reservation via the Alewife Linear Park to Boston’s
Charles River Bike Path.[13]